PyroPlayer Magazine - PPM Adventurer's Guild

Paladin's Quest

Enix * SNES * 12 MB * Now Available

For those players searching for an off-beat, eccentric adventure game, Enix recently published a peculiar role-playing cart named Paladin's Quest. Chezni, a rookie student of magic, appears to have inadvertently released a being of pure evil from its eternal prison. Your neighbors warned you not to climb that tower! Guide young Chezni and his cohorts to prevent utter disaster by repairing the world step by step. The journey is stuffed with humor and recurring gags, so we're not trapped in the doldrum of your standard Dungeons and Dragons quest. Enemy types are widely varied and scale from creative to downright odd, and bosses prove monstrously powerful with notoriously giant health pools.

Originally known as Lennus and developed by Asmik, Paladin's Quest is the strangest of beasts. Battles are a touch generic, though spiced-up with a unique "attack any body part" design. Swords and spears are vastly underpowered compared to magic, as you'll find out early on, yet your Hit Points decrease with magic use! PQ's graphics are perhaps its most distinguishing characteristic. Some mags have sharply criticized PQ's use of bright pastel colors and frame its presentation as 8-Bit. Our team found the graphical style rather charming! Not every cart needs to be Secret of Mana! Try this one out as a rental and see for yourself. It's worth your time, even if your characters will perish... a lot.

Printed in Issue #11, March 1994

Romancing SaGa 2

Square * SNES * 16 MB * Import Available

Romancing SaGa?! What on earth is that? We admit, those of us in the States have been unable to acquire a translated or localized version of the SNES SaGa series of games, but we can guarantee that you've heard of SaGa before - just not by such an unfamiliar name. Final Fantasy Legend I through III on Game Boy are known in Japan as SaGa 1 through 3. It's true! Square renamed that beloved portable series with the FF moniker to achieve stronger sales figures. RS II on SNES is out now in Japan, and it has swiftly become one of the island country's favorite role-playing titles. Crowds lined the streets in December to pick up this cart upon release, and, trust us, games players in Japan know quality RPGs when they see it.

In RS II, you play as Leon, the Emperor of Avalon, and your fated task if to take down a corrupted bunch of baddies called the Seven Heroes. When Leon falls, his son Gerald takes the lead, and so on throughout the game (Saga, get it? -Jet). Despite its story differences, generational system, and speech-bubble presentation quirk, the core gameplay in RS II brings forth fond memories of Final Fantasy. Be mindful, that is a compliment! Few disagree that the FF formula for RPG battles is gaming perfection. Your party members each have their own strengths and weaknesses, and you gain levels of weapon and magic experience as you fight on. Should Square bring this state-side, play it straight away!

Printed in Issue #11, March 1994